A Boulder judge has denied a request for a sentence reduction by a repeat DUI offender from Texas who is serving 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to driving drunk down the wrong side of the Diagonal Highway last summer and causing an accident that eventually led to the death of one person.

According to court records, Dean Carlson, 57, filed a motion asking for a sentence reduction in May. But last Thursday, Boulder District Judge Thomas Mulvahill denied the request to reduce the sentence, which was handed down by District Judge Gwyneth Whalen in January.

"The original sentence was reasonable, appropriate and necessary upon consideration of the facts and (Carlson's) history," Mulvahill wrote. "Reduction of sentence is not justified."

Daniel Mays

According to investigators, Carlson was driving north in the southbound lanes of the Diagonal Highway in a rented Chevy HHR around 4 a.m. July 21, 2012, near 55th Street when he struck Daniel Mays, 28, and his girlfriend, Sean Balog, 23, in a black Toyota Yaris heading south.

Carlson admitted to drinking earlier that night on Pearl Street and had a blood alcohol level of 0.221 two hours after the accident.

Mays remained in a coma until he passed away a couple months ago, according to prosecutors. While Mays eventually died as a result of his injuries, prosecutors forfeited the right to charge Carlson with vehicular homicide when he accepted a plea bargain.

Carlson pleaded guilty in November to two counts of vehicular assault while driving under the influence, both Class 4 felonies, and two counts of vehicular assault, both Class 5 felonies. He also pleaded guilty to DUI, reckless driving and driving down the wrong side of a divided highway, all misdemeanors.

As a condition of the plea bargain, Carlson could not be sentenced to more than 15 years in prison.

He is currently serving his time at the Kit Carson Correctional Facility in Burlington.

Carlson had three previous DUI convictions in New York and Texas, and had gotten his driving privileges back just before the accident on the Diagonal.

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